INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – Nine UMKC track and field student-athletes will compete at the 2017 NCAA Outdoor Track and Field Outdoor West Preliminary Round on May 25-27 in Austin, Texas, the NCAA announced on Thursday.

The Roos' squad will have a majority of the Western Athletic Conference representation after the league announced 16 total student-athletes will compete at the three-day meet. It also marks the largest group of student-athletes UMKC has sent to the NCAA West Preliminary Round in program history.

Graduate student Remy Abrought (Kansas City, Mo.) enters the meet with the 31st fastest time in the women's 100-meter hurdles after finishing first in the WAC Championship preliminaries with a time of 13.43 seconds. Similarly, Fred Boyd (Detroit, Mich.) clocked in the top time at the championships in the men's 110-meter hurdles preliminaries, crossing the line in 14.21 seconds to earn to his first trip to the national meet.

Thrower Blake Hocking (Lawrence, Kan.) will lead the way in the field for the Roos, competing in the men's shot put and discus events. The senior broke the UMKC discus record for the second time at the Emporia State Relays earlier this season with a heave of 53.36 meters. The Roos returned to Emporia, Kansas, the following weekend where Hocking turned in his season-best mark of 17.93 meters in the shot put.

Sisters Matia Finley (Lawrence, Kan.) and Rebecca Finley (Lawrence, Kan.) each earned a spot in the women's discus field of 48 after finishing the regular season with personal best performances of 50.82 meters and 50.58 meters, respectively. The two marks by the Finley sisters rank first and second in UMKC program history.

After winning the men's javelin at the WAC Championships with a personal best throw of 62.24 meters, Harpreet Dosanjh (Overland Park, Kan.) has earned the No. 43 spot at the national meet in the event. Freshman Lukas van der Watt (Vrendenburg, South Africa) broke his own UMKC school record in the pole vault at the Roos' regular season finale after clearing 5.12 meters to also earn a spot in the first round.

Jumping duo Christopher Bryan (St. Catherine, Jamaica) and Richard Smith (Kansas City, Mo.) will represent UMKC in the long jump and triple jump, respectively. Bryan enters the NCAA West Preliminary Round with a personal best leap of 7.56 meters in the long jump, while Smith has the highest seed of any Roo with the 24th furthest mark of 15.63 meters in the triple jump.